Apple Tart

THIS is your new favorite apple pie recipe. Well, technically it is a tart because it only had a bottom crust and no top crust. But you don't need a top crust. It's just extra fuss and we all know the best part of a pie is the filling anyway. This tart recipe is fairly quick and easy, no-fuss, and looks pretty impressive. Oh, and did I mention it tastes really darn good? 

• Apple cinnamon tart
• All butter pastry crust
• Brown bread ice cream
• Spiced whipped cream
• Maple sauce

Tart Dough

This tart dough I used for my apple tart. It isn't a flaky pie dough, nor a buttery shortbread crust, not a sweet sugar cookie dough. Is is somewhere in the middle of all three. It is easy to make and not so finicky as typical pie doughs. I prefer it to be rolled thick, but this recipe can also be rolled more thinly into two pie bases.

Tart Dough

125 grams unsalted butter, softened

60 grams granulated (white) sugar

1 large egg

250 grams all-purpose (plain) flour

Cream butter and sugar together well until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg. Stir in the flour. Roll into pie or tartlet crusts.

Bake at 350◦F for 10-20 minutes depending on size and thickness.

To avoid inflating, the crust may be weighed down with pie weights, but uncovered for the last five minutes of baking.

Bake slightly longer if the filling does not need to be baked.

Caramel Apple Oat Frangipane Tart

Caramel Apple Oat Frangipane Tart
one freshly baked nine inch pie crust
one can or jar dulce de leche
6 medium cooking apples, peeled and cut into eighths
2 Tablespoons brown sugar
1 Tablespoon water
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
one recipe oatmeal frangipane (see tomorrow's post)

Preheat oven to 320◦F.
Spread the dulce de leche over the crust bottom.
Place the apples, sugar, water and cinnamon in a wide pot. Bring to a simmer and cook until apples are just beginning to soften. They will continue to cook in the oven. Drain well.

Arrange the apples over the dulce de leche.
Spread with oatmeal frangipane.

Bake for about 40 minutes until frangipane is golden and set and a toothpick inserted in the frangipane comes out clean.

Serve hot, warm, cooled, or even cold. If reheated, the oven is much better used than the microwave.

Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Pie, Pumpkin Pie

This makes a big batch of pumpkin pie....six good sized pies! The filling can also be  baked into tarts, custards, muffins, loaves, etc. It is a classic pumpkin pie recipe with plenty of spice and is super easy to make. Just ensure you  have a bowl or tupperware container big enough to mix the batter in. What's sad is the 12 cups of pumpkin hardly put a dent in our pumpkin supply.

Pumpkin Pie
6 pie crusts, not par-baked
12 cups pumpkin puree
10 cups evaporated milk
12 eggs
6 cups brown sugar
2 teaspoons salt
3 Tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 Tablespoon ground ginger
1 Tablespoon ground nutmeg

Prepare the crusts. Whisk remaining ingredients together. Pour into crusts. Bake at 400◦F for 15 minutes, then at 350◦F for 20 minutes or until set. 

Chicken Pot Pie with Two Crusts

Chicken pot pie ... rich, creamy, delicious, and chock-full of vegetables and chicken. This one contains shredded chicken meat, peas, carrots, turnip, and potatoes in a creamy sauce. This pie is extra cook because it contains two different crusts - the bottom in a buttery puff pastry crust that absorbed all the flavor and moisture from the sauce making it merely a vessel for the filling. The top crust is crisp, light phyllo pastry that adds a nice crunch to the dish.

Pumpkin Pie

Mmmm... no Christmas feast is complete without a pumpkin pie or two for dessert. This pumpkin pie has the signature flaky crust, and creamy rich pumpkin filling made from canned pumpkin puree and a rich custard or condensed milk, eggs, sugar, and flavorings. To make it even more special, we topped it off with homemade, soft-serve vanilla ice cream which was as fluffy as a marshmallow. Who says pumpkin pie has to be a fall dessert?

Chritmas Dinner In August

Not too long ago at work we had an entire Christmas dinner in August. We had a feast with all the fixings and afterwards felt happy and stuffed. Our Christmas dinner consisted of Challah bread and butter, different pickles, chutneys, and preserves, honey thyme carrots, peas, creamy mashed potatoes, stuffing, a brined turkey breast with gravy, pumpkin pie, and homemade vanilla ice cream.

fresh Challah bread

mustard pickles, cranberry sauce, red pepper jelly, and pickled peppers

brined turkey breast

gravy

honey and thyme glazed carrots

creamy mashed potatoes

the entire feast

stuffing

Fall Pot Pie

Flaky puff pastry dough + sweet squash lentil apple filling + sliced apples seasoned with cinnamon and salt, arranged in a bowl and baked until crust is golden, apples are soft, and filling is hot and bubbly. This is a super delicious dish that is sweet enough to be served for a healthier dessert but also great for lunch as well. These pies can be made as big or as small as you wish. Nuts or other fruits can easily be added.

Dough Danish Turnovers

Going along with the same idea as those pie dough scraps from last week, here we have dough 'turnovers' or shortcut Danish pastries. We took the leftover dough from making a tortiere meat pie, and made mini turnovers and one large turnover. We didn't really worry about getting perfect triangles as we were just utilizing scrap dough anyway. 

Some are filled with dark chocolate chips, which melted just enough to form a nice filling but not enough to ooze out of the pastry. Some are filled with spiced almonds, some with crushed maple walnuts, some with cinnamon sugar, and some with a combination of those. They are simply sealed with water, but also could be brushed with egg wash or milk before baking to allow more toppings to adhere. They can be brushed or dipped in melted butter after baking to give them a little more flavor. This is a basic pie dough for a savory pie, so the dough itself is not very sweet, making it the perfect vessel for a maple glaze or a frosting as well.

Pie Dough Scraps

Remember the pate en croute from yesterday? It requires a big batch of pie dough because you have to roll it out to get the right shape, and then trim it to fit the pate. So there are a lot of scraps. Waste not want not - cut the leftover dough into strips and deep-fry them until golden and crisp. Then drizzle them with a little melted salted butter and add your favorite toppings....

1. Cinnamon Sugar - a classic
2. Crushed Maple Candied Walnuts
3. Grated Dark and White Chocolate

Just toss in the toppings, as little or as much as you like. Since the pie dough contains no sugar, savory applications would work as well. I recommend trying sesame seeds, spice mixtures, and parmesan cheese; or leave them plain and add dipping sauces such as barbecue, ranch, cheese, salsa, hummus, etc. 

Lemon Meringue Pie Fix

The other day a friend came to me with a lemon meringue pie that didn't set up quite properly. It was strange, because the crust was delicious and perfectly baked and the filling was firm and tasty. Then the meringue was spread on and torched. I think the issue either came with not letting the filling set and cool long enough before being put in the pie shell, or before the meringue was put on. Also the meringue was not cooked or baked - only the top was torched so it weeped.

This causes a very yummy lemon meringue, well soup. It was liquidy and didn't stay together but the flavor was there. I suggested transforming it into a mousse, parfait, or trifle-type dessert. But then the pie was left with me to fix and I decided to try fixing it into a pie again. 

Lemon pie, take #2

I scraped the meringue off the top and put it into a bowl to set aside.
I scraped all the lemon filling out and put it in a pot, added some cornstarch and boiled it to thicken. Then transferred it to a bowl and cooled it to set.
I popped the crust in the oven briefly to crisp up and not turn out soggy from the lemon filling.
Then the meringue. I knew I couldn't rewhip it to form a nice meringue, so I decided to do something completely different with it. I put it in a saucepan, added some brown sugar for flavor and some cornstarch to thicken. I cooked it, then cooled it. This formed a 'burnt' (toasted from the meringue) caramel sauce that didn't harden because the cooked egg whites kept it soft and not overly sweet. It also enriched it without the use of butter.

To assemble, I spread the thick lemon filling into the crust, then since I didn't have a lot of the caramel, I piped it around the pie. The result? A really good lemon caramel pie that held together, and you would never know it had been a failure. The lesson? Learn from your mistakes, don't throw anything (that isn't spoiled) out, and get creative to use up leftovers.

It may not be the prettiest, but it is tasty considering what it came from!

Vegan Shepherd's Pie

Once upon a time at a camp I attended in the summer, I opted for the vegetarian option and it was a vegetarian version of shepherd's pie, or what the French refer to as, 'Paté Chinoise'. The regular entrée wasn't even shepherd's pie, is was something completely different and I am guessing not great looking. But the shepherd's pie looked interesting and certainly intrigued me. It turned out to be a version I liked even better than the traditional. 

Shepherd's pie is traditional meat-laden (usually ground lamb or beef), filled with chopped hard-boiled eggs, mixed with vegetables in a creamy sauce, and topped with creamy, butter mashed potatoes and sometimes cheese. 

There are three vegetarian/vegan versions you could make. The first one would be as traditional as possible, just subbing the closest ingredient options (simulated ground beef crumbles, coconut cream sauce, mashed potatoes with vegan margarine). The second one, which is what I made, is not nearly as traditional, but actually much healthier. I used lentils (brown are a good option for looks, but I only had red on hand). I threw in whatever veggies I had and used lots of spice, and some oil and just a splash of cream for the sauce. Then I topped it with mashed sweet potato because I love them and they go so well with lentils, both taste-wise and nutritionally. A sprinkle of paprika, and dinner is served!!!

Flaky Vegan Pie Dough

Flaky Vegan Pie Dough
3 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon granulated (white) sugar
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 cup cold water

Stir together the flour, salt, and sugar. Gradually stream in the oil, blending with a fork until incorporated. Add the water, one tablespoon at a time, just until the dough begins to stick together. It should be slightly crumbly rather than wet, and be able to be pressed into a ball. Press dough into a ball, flatten into a disk, wrap in plastic, and chill - I recommend the freezer for an hour or two, but if preparing a day in advance, you can just chill it in the refrigerator overnight so it doesn't become too hard.

It shouldn't be too firm to roll out once you remove it from the fridge/freezer - so no need to wait for the dough to warm up. Dust the work surface with flour, dust the top of the dough or the rolling pin with flour, and roll dough out as thinly as required, depending on the desired use. Baking time/temperature also depends upon the application of this dough.

The dough can be used for pie crusts, savory or sweet (add a touch more sugar). It can also be used for biscuits, pot pies, and the pinwheel bites I made using the filling featured in tomorrow's post!

Caramel Cream Pie

Caramel Cream Pie
1 nine inch pie crust, baked and cooled
2 packages (four serving size) instant vanilla pudding 
3 cups heavy whipping cream (35%)
thick caramel sauce, as needed

Beat the pudding mixes and cream together for a couple minutes until thickened. Spread a good layer of caramel sauce in the bottom of the pie crust. Top with the pudding filling. Drizzle more caramel sauce over top, then use a fork to swirl it around. 

This is such a simple pie - another one of my 'cheat' cream pies using pudding mix. Alternately, the filling could be made from scratch as well, and any type of pie crust could be used - even shortbread, graham crumb, or chocolate crumb. Caramel isn't one of the typical cream pie fillings, and here caramel is just used on the top and the bottom, with a vanilla filling in between. However, this pie was a huge crowd pleaser, largely due both to its taste and its uniqueness. 

Turkey And Dumplings

Turkey And Dumplings
VEGETABLES
oil
1 large onion, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
1 package (8 ounces/250 grams) button mushrooms, chopped
1 can peas (save liquid)
2 cups diced cooked turkey (or use chicken)
SAUCE
1/4 cup butter or hard margarine
1/4 cup all-purpose (plain) flour
1 can (370mL) evaporated milk
liquid from can of peas
garlic powder, to taste
ground black pepper, to taste
salt, to taste
DUMPLINGS
2 cups all-purpose (plain) flour
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons granulated (white) sugar
1 teaspon salt
2 Tablespoons butter or hard margarine
1 cup milk

 VEGETABLES: Heat the oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add the onion, carrots, and mushrooms, cover, and allow the vegetables to sweat, without browning, until just beginning to soften. Stir in the peas and the chicken.
SAUCE: Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Quickly whisk in the flour until smooth. Gradually whisk in the milk, then the pea liquid. Bring to a light boil and cook until thickened, then season to taste.
DUMPLINGS: In a large bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt. Cut in the butter until crumbly. Stir in the milk to form a soft dough.

ASSEMBLY: Stir the sauce into the vegetable mixture in the pot. Spread evenly. Drop the dumplings by spoonfuls onto the vegetable sauce mixture. Cover with a tight-fitting lid or cover and bake at 375◦F for about 30 minutes, without uncovering, until the dumplings are cooked. If you would like to give the dumplings a bit of a crisp top, turn the broiler on for a few minutes at the end of cooking - keeping an eye on the dumplings until they are golden.

Coconut Cream Easter Nests

Here are some little Easter basket desserts I made. I have often seen ideas for Easter basket cupcakes, but I didn't want cupcakes. Then I thought of coconut cream pies, since coconut seems to be a popular flavor around Easter time as well. They turned out very nicely. Miniature cheesecakes would work well with this idea too.

Coconut Cream Easter Nests
1 cup granulated (white) sugar
3 Tablespoons all-purpose (plain) flour
pinch salt
3 cups milk (use coconut for more coconut flavor)
3 large eggs, beaten
1 1/2 cups shredded coconut
1 Tablespoon coconut oil
1 teaspoon coconut or vanilla extract

In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, flour, and salt. Slowly whisk in the milk, then bring the mixture almost to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for two minutes until thickened. Add a few spoonfuls of this hot mixture to the eggs to temper them, then slowly whisk the eggs into the mixture. Return to heat, and bring just about to a boil, then simmer for two minutes more. Remove from heat, then stir in the coconut, oil, and extract.

This can now be used as a regular coconut cream pie filling - poured into a baked shell, covered with plastic wrap, and chilled until firm.
It may be baked as a crustless coconut cream pie - pour into a greased pie dish and bake at 325◦F for about 30 minutes until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

I divided my pie filling mixture among twelve paper-lined muffin cups with an unbaked chocolate crumb crust on the bottom. I sprinkled a little extra coconut on top. Then I baked them for about 20 minutes until set.

To make Easter baskets: Cool the miniature pies, then peel off the paper linings. Place a few jelly beans, candy eggs, or chocolate eggs in the center of each. I used dried fruit to look like eggs. Pipe some melted chocolate onto parchment paper to resemble basket handles, then stick into the pies once hardened. Use white chocolate to make a few bunnies as well.

Pi(e) Day

Mini Pi Pies

Spooky Shepherd's Pie

Unfortunately, I was unable to bake a pie in time for pi day this year. I spent the bulk of my day in transit. It's a shame, because this pi day is extra special since it is March 14th, 2015 (3.14.15). Maybe I will be able to pull some kind of pie off, no matter now small or how simple, by 9:26:53 p.m. (3.141592653), although it would have probably been better in the a.m. Maybe I will at the very least find some pie to eat. For the time being though, I am going to share some pie photos from my collection. 

Apple Pie Pancake

Sneaky Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

Mock Apple Pie

Lemon Raspberry Whoopie Pies

Pumpkin Pie Cupcakes

Blueberry Pie Bars

Turkey Pot Pie

Coconut Cream Pie

Coconut Cream Pie
one 9-inch pie crust, baked and cooled
3 cups whipping cream
2 packages instant vanilla pudding mix (four serving size)
2 cups shredded coconut

In a medium bowl, beat together the cream and pudding mix for about two minutes until thickened. Stir in the coconut. Spread evenly in prepared pie crust. Sprinkle with additional coconut for garnish.

This coconut cream pie really couldn't be any easier - it is also so rich, creamy, and coconuty. A small slice goes a long way. 

Boston Cream Pie

Boston cream pie is actually a custard-filled cake with a chocolate topping. However, this is my recipe for a Boston cream pie that is indeed a pie. It uses a vanilla pudding mix as the custard filling, which is just like a custard made from scratch, which of course can be substituted if preferred. It is topped with a rich, chocolaty glaze. Garnish as desired for a quick and simple cream pie. Feel free to use a graham crumb crust or shortbread in place of a traditional pie pastry. 

Boston Cream Pie
one 9-inch prepared pie crust, baked and cooled
2 cups cold whipping cream
2 packages (four serving size) instant vanilla pudding mix
1 cup icing sugar
1/4 cup sifted unsweetened cocoa powder
3 Tablespoons butter or hard margarine, melted
3-5 Tablespoons hot coffee
flaked almonds and icing sugar, to garnish 

In a medium bowl, whip together the milk and pudding mix until very thick, approximately one minute. Spread evenly into prepared crust. Chill while preparing glaze.
In a small bowl, beat together the sugar, cocoa, butter, and coffee until smooth. Add enough coffee to make a barely pourable but easily spreadable glaze. Spread evenly over filling. Decorate with almonds and sprinkle with icing sugar. 

Spiced Eggnog Cream Pie

This is a Christmas pie recipe I came up with while staring at a jug of eggnog in the fridge. It is an easy way to make a simple cream pie, but had the Christmas flavors of eggnog and spices. I also found some cute little gingerbread man sprinkles to garnish it, though whipped cream would work as well. I like to use one of my favorite pie crust recipes, and oil-based pastry which is lighter and easier than a traditional pie crust. A shortbread or graham crumb crust would also be nice, but a prepared frozen or refrigerated pie shell could be used as well.

Spiced Eggnog Cream Pie
1 prepared pie crust, baked and cooled 
(I used {Oil-Based Pie Pastry})
2 cups eggnog
2 packages (4 serving size) instant vanilla pudding mix (no cook)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
gingerbread man sprinkles (or desired garnish, optional)

In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggnog, pudding, and spices for approximately two minutes until thickened. Spread mixture evenly into prepared pie shell. Garnish as desired. Chill before serving.